A review from storycirclebookreviews.com

I guess when it rains, it pours? Well, this review wasn't as good as the readersfavorite.com review, but the problems are manageable. 

Reviewed by Enid Cokinos (three stars)

Jennifer Kim's novel, Five Stones, is an enjoyable read packed with believable characters and engaging dialogue. The story, set in current-day San Francisco, centers on the Kim Family. The five daughters—Mihae, Jihae, Soonhae, Kihae and Marhae—are all born in United States, but they are still held to the standards of their Korean heritage, particularly as it pertains to courting and marriage.

Though Mrs. Kim loves her five daughters—each unique in her own way—her attitude toward them is clear: after graduating from college, she wants them married.

When her daughters were children, they were like five beautiful jewels strung around her neck...As they grew older, the worries over their future, specifically the question of marriage, turned the precious jewels into rough stones. Some were smaller than others, but all of them heavy, jagged and cutting. With each passing year, the five stones around her neck grew heavier, and the pressing burden was unbearable at times.

Mihae and Jihae, the two oldest daughters, who have "utterly failed to procure a husband, acceptable or not," cannot escape their mother's determination as she sets up suhn after suhn (a blind marriage date, sometimes accompanied by the dating pair's mothers) without their approval. They protest, but the strong-willed Mrs. Kim is unrelenting.

The middle daughter, Soonhae, has other plans for her life, and the two younger daughters are not yet of marrying age. Though Mrs. Kim's focus is on her two oldest daughters, it does not stop her from fretting about her younger daughters, hoping they will find husbands at the appropriate time, as well.

Romance blossoms throughout the book, but several twists and turns keep the reader wondering if Mihae and Jihae will ever find true love. It is an enjoyable read, but unfortunately, this self-published book did not undergo a thorough editorial review for grammar, punctuation, and style, which is reflected in the overall rating.

Though it's a not five-star review, I like this review for several reasons:

1. It clearly spells out what I need to work on - grammar, punctuation, and style.  I agree with maybe punctuation and certainly style, I'm not sure about the grammar. Still, it's a matter of preference, so I just have to work harder to fix these things.
2. She said it was an enjoyable read with engaging characters and believable dialogue.
3. She said it keeps the reader wondering if the two sisters will ever find love. So, it wasn't predictable.

This site will only review hard-copy books. So, if you put your energy into writing a book, work on it a little longer and get it published through createspace.com. It only takes your time to get a physical copy. I don't know about you, but there's something quite satisfying in holding a physical copy in your hands.

If you're interested in getting a book reviewed, you might want to check out the link below.

http://www.storycirclebookreviews.org/gettingreviewed.shtml

Good luck!

A review from readersfavorite.com

I submitted a request for a review on readersfavorite.com on 2/4/15. This was one of those book review sites where you can pay to get your review expedited, but I opted for a free review. 

It wasn't about the fee they charged for a 2 week turnaround review ($59), but the fact that even if it only expedited the review, saying I paid for a review seemed to taint it validity somehow. I did pay for my Kirkus Review review, but it was Kirkus Review. I don't know.... Anyhow, instead of 2 weeks, mine took 16 weeks (sent in the request on 2/4/15, and my review came on 6/9/15). And it was well worth the wait for me.

Reviewed by Nandita Keshavan for Readers' Favorite (Five Stars)

Five Stones is an excellent modern Korean-American version of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice by Jennifer Kim. I enjoyed reading about the Kim family's story, with witty and dramatic twists of the plot and the suspense of two unexpected romances, with their celebrations and struggles. At the head of the family is a stern but loving matriarch who makes multiple attempts to ensure that of her five daughters, those who are eligible to marry will find a suitable match. The Kim family is an interesting one, with each daughter adopting distinct traits. The five daughters are like five stones around her neck till she finds suitable marriage partners for them.

This book will appeal to readers who are interested in family matchmaking alongside secret interests with an Asian twist. Furthermore, it contains the medley of humour, suspense and heart-rending moments of Austen's work, but with a modern feel. I really appreciated the lack of pretentiousness of the characters. Though the story has twists and turns, you still get the effect that the events could happen to anyone in similar circumstances, that all the characters are believable and likeable. The plot in the book concerning the eldest daughter - Mihae - is the most interesting and the suspense, love, persistence, humility, jealousy and trust issues are riveting, and run alongside and overlap with the issues that Jihae faces. It's an engaging book which warns against false first impressions and shows the value of intuition versus believing false stereotypes. I believe it would make a great film, and would appeal to people of all ages.

I like this book review site for several reasons:

1. There was a minor error in my review, and it was corrected in less than 24 hours!
2. The review was posted on Barnes and Noble website (this is not so common from my experience),.
3. The reviewer seemed to have read the book completely (another reviewer referenced events from the first four chapters only, which led me to wonder if this person read my book all the way through).

If you have a book you want to get reviewed, I think this is a great site to submit your material (all submissions are digital).

Here is a link for you to check it out if you're interested.

https://readersfavorite.com/book-reviews.htm

Good luck.